How do prisoners get money in jail?
There are 2.3 million people in the U.S. prison system as of 2020.There needs to be more prisons to house the people in prison.The private, or for-profit, prison system has arisen from this.
There are a lot of questions about the private prison system.How can a private company legally incarcerate people?Isn't it the government's job to house and hold prisoners?The government contracts a lot of their work.
A public prison is owned by the government.They have to provide a prison building, staff the guards and administration, and oversee all of the prisoners inside the prison.Many of the services in a public prison are provided by private contractors.
Many of the burdens are taken off the government with a private prison.In order to run a prison, the government has to supply the prisoners and oversee them.The question is how a for-profit prison makes money.
A public prison is not for profit.The goal is to rehabilitate prisoners or remove them from the streets.A private prison is run by a corporation.The goal of the corporation is to make money.
They receive a stipend from the government in order to make money as a private prison.There are many ways in which the government's money can be paid.Most of the time, it is paid based on the number of prisoners that the prison houses.
If it costs $100 per day to house a prisoner, the prison building can hold 1,000 inmates.$150 per day per prisoner is what a private prison can charge the government.If the $150 is less than what the public would pay, the government will agree to these terms.The private prison makes money from that spread.
Saving money increases the bottom line.The business can bring in more money if it expands, but it needs capital to do that.
It is possible for a business to go public as it grows.This does a few things for the company that it can not do as a privately held business.
Exposure is the key to growth.The more people know about the company, the more sales they can do.Exposure is not something they really need in a private prison.They need capital boost for two reasons.
Private prisons can make $50,000 per day on a prison that houses 1,000 inmates.If they land another contract with the government to build a prison in a neighboring state, they could make an additional $50,000 per day by maxing out that prison.They can see a sudden influx of money that will allow them to build a second prison if they go public.
There is more to it than going public for a private prison.In order to stay in business, these prisons need a constant stream of inmates.In some cases, the laws have to be more strictly enforced.They have to buy politicians.Lobbying is frowned upon.
It seems like a great idea to have a private prison.If a private company comes along and says they can house a prisoner for $150 per day, then why not save the government money and allow them to make money?The economics behind prisoners are the problem.
The goal of the prison system is to rehabilitate prisoners.The private prisons would be out of business if the prison was effective.Is prison supposed to rehabilitate the individual or is it meant to make money?A high prison population is the end goal if the goal is to earn money.
There is a problem with the fact that these are for-profit businesses.If they can cut services from their list, they will save money.The cost per prisoner would go down to $90 per day if the cleaning services were cut.If there are 1,000 prisoners in the facility, they instantly earn an additional $10 per day.The company makes more money by cutting cleaning, but it also provides bad living conditions for the inmates.The quality of living quarters for prisoners is affected by cutting costs.
The law needs to be structured in a way that allows a steady stream of new inmates.Stricter laws mean more people in the system.The prison gets more money from more people in the system.Many argue that the war on drugs was started because of another set of laws that could incarcerate thousands of people every year.
Private prisons hold around 198,000 inmates.It makes up less than 9% of the total prison population.
Any time an industry can be run privately it is better for the economy according to the capitalist mindset.The government should provide those services according to the socialist mindset.The prison system is overcrowded according to the realist.
The project was about sentencing.Capitalizing on Mass Incarceration: U.S. Growth in Private Prisons.
The Associated Press.Private prisons cost more than state-run prisons.